The doors leading deeper into the castle had finally opened and there, stood the strange masked man.  His black and white mask with only a hint of color was quite a strange thing to look at.  Upon seeing him the two sisters nodded to each other and took their places on either side of the masked messenger.  As they still had their helmets on all three of them were somewhat 'masked' which did not give off the most welcoming atmosphere.

[b]"Welcome to his Lordship's humble estate.  I have been given the task of telling you all that Lord Grimm is ready to start negotiations."  The man gave an over dramatic bow, like a jester or even a butler, and then stood back up.  "I will be happy to show you the way to his lordship's throne room."[/b]  The man clasped his hands together as he waited for the two groups to get ready.

There were quite a few mutterings on both sides saying 'about time' and other sentiments as the White Rock Confederacy got together while the Onyx Empire formed ranks.  Tensions started to get high as both sides realized the negotiations were about to begin.  Also, unlike the first time when they had passed through the outer gate separately they would have to go the rest of the way together, needless to say having to just walk essentially side by side was enough make a few a little paranoid.

[b]"Come then, and I expect you all to behave in front of his lordship."[/b]  The masked man never turned around to lead them, which confused a few at first but then the man started taking steps backward without the slightest notion of worry.  The red and green knights however, did turn around to walk as going backward in full armor would no doubt be quite the chore.  The ones in the front quickly realized they were to follow and the two groups cautiously entered into a long hallway.

The hallway was decked out in granite, marble, and was thankfully quite wide so each side was able to give the other some space.  There were some stands and chairs every so often made of dark wood, the occasional hallway splitting off leading to other areas of the castle, and quite a few large paintings with silver frames.  The paintings had a very recognizable theme, monsters and mythical creatures of various forms and persuasions.  Most were ones the average man would never have had the chance to see in real life, though a few were still around in some areas.

The pictures also had somewhat of a pattern to them.  At first the paintings were of humanoid species, ranging from elves to fairies.  As they made their way down the creatures kept getting less and less humanoid and more animal; by the end of the hallway the paintings were now filled with the deadly and fantastical of heroes' legends and nightmares.  They certainly added on to the eerie atmosphere the place was giving.

Eventually they made it to another set of doors, these were quite magnificent in design and were chiseled with ivory pictures of dragons, angels, and demons.  The sister knights each took a handle of the large doors and pushed them open as the masked man bowed, saying, [b]"Welcome to Castle Grimm, his lordship awaits."[/b]  A few people held their breaths as the doors opened, revealing the large throne room with all its tapestries, and people.

[i]"How could such splendor exist at the top of the mountains?"[/i]  An Onyxian could not help but mutter, especially after noticing the chandelier and what looked like gold veins in the floor.  It was not a very bright room but one could not help but feel it was 'rich'.

At the far end was Lord Grimm, seated on an ivory throne in full, dark armor.  To his left were his twin daughters who gazed out at the visitors as they poured in, trying to gauge their worth.  To his right was a slightly smaller seat for his wife, but at the moment it was empty and Lady Grimm was no where to be seen.  At the sides of the room were of course the throne room guards with their long halbards, as well as various people ranging from those of station to servants caring for the needs of those present.

The masked man and two knights led them to the middle of the room in front of the throne, by this point the masked man was no longer walking backwards as he was in the presence of his lord.  The three stopped a good ways from their master and all fell on one knee in front of him.

[b]"My Lord."[/b]  They responded in unison and stayed that way until they motioned up by a hand from Lord Grimm.  After rising the they parted so that no one was between Lord Grimm and the visitors from below.  While the two knights too respective positions at the end of the throne guard, the masked man made his way over to the Lord's daughters and stood a respectful distance from them.

Lord Grimm stood up from his throne and spread his arms wide as if to embrace them.  [b]"Welcome to my domain representatives of the Onyx Empire and the White Rock Confederation.  I have been anticipating this moment for quite some time.  No doubt you are eager to begin however; I wish to show you something first.  Nefiris, Irelis, show them your faces."[/b]

The Green and Red knights nodded and removed their helmets from their heads.  Complete surprise and shock rippled through both camps as they gazed upon somethings they never thought they would ever see.  The two sisters had darkened skin, silver hair and eyes which was no doubt quite unusual but what got every's attention were their pointed ears.

[i]"By the great Forest, I thought they were just myths."[/i]  Someone said on the White Rock side, perhaps a little too loudly, there were various others words of bewilderment from both sides, though a few managed to keep their heads as they realized what Lord Grimm was doing.  No doubt he was showing something so rare in order to wet the appetites of both sides before beginning negotiations.  Unfortunately the majority of both camps, already in wonderment from the castle itself were now so taken aback that it would be hard to remain calm.

The dark elf twins' mouths curled up ever so slightly at the startled reactions.